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Sochi Games CEO brushes aside controversy over Rodnina, racist tweet

The head of the Sochi organizing committee dismissed any controversy about the choice of figure skating great Irina Rodnina to light the Olympic torch on Saturday, declining to address the racially insensitive doctored photograph of President Obama and the First Lady she shared on Twitter last September.

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Sochi Games CEO brushes aside controversy over Rodnina, racist tweet

Dan Wolken, USA TODAY Sports 4:09 a.m. EST February 8, 2014

Olympic torch bearer Irina Rodnina was embroiled in controversy after it was revealed that she sent, then deleted, a racist tweet about U.S. President Barack Obama last September.(Photo: Robert Hanashiro, USA TODAY Sports)

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SOCHI, Russia — The head of the Sochi organizing committee dismissed any controversy about the choice of figure skating great Irina Rodnina to light the Olympic torch on Saturday, declining to address the racially insensitive doctored photograph of President Obama and the First Lady she shared on Twitter last September.

The image depicted Obama with his mouth full of food, seated next to his wife, behind a fake image of a banana. Though Rodnina took down the Tweet quickly, she refused to apologize, even after it gained attention on social media.

"She is a three-time Olympic champion, one of the most respected in the world of Olympic athletes," organizing committee president and CEO Dmitriy Chernyshenko said during a regularly scheduled news conference. "I want to stress that Olympics is not about politics, and any political talks about discussions are inappropriate."

Some have interpreted the choice of Rodnina as a shot across the bow during an Olympics in which passive-aggressive tensions have simmered between Russia and the United States over political and social issues.

Obama decided not to attend the Games in Sochi, becoming the first American president since the 2000 Summer Olympics not to make an appearance. Instead, he appointed a delegation with three openly gay athletes, which was viewed as a strong response to Russia's so-called "gay propaganda" law enacted under President Vladimir Putin.

In his opening address to the IOC session this week, president Thomas Bach didn't name Obama directly but criticized politicians who use the Olympics "as a stage for political dissent."

Rodnina, who shared the torch-lighting honors with legendary hockey goalie Vladislav Tretiak, lived in the USA for a number of years but is now a member of the Russian parliament. Confronted about the Tweet last year, she was defiant, accusing political adversaries of stirring up controversy.

Michael McFaul, the American ambassador to Russia, wrote on Twitter that she was guilty of "outrageous behavior."

IOC spokesman Mark Adams declined to specifically answer whether there had been discussion about whether it was appropriate for her to be a torch bearer in light of the Tweet.

"Clearly, this is not the IOC that chooses torch bearers, but she was chosen for what she's done in sport," Adams said. "She's a triple gold medalist and she has done a great deal of work in sport. It was a decision Sochi took as it did with all the torch bearers."

United States flag bearer Todd Lodwick leads the U.S. Olympic team onto the stage during the opening ceremony for the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games at Fisht Olympic Stadium. (Photo: Robert Hanashiro, USA TODAY Sports)

Performers wearing lighted outfits during the Dove of Peace segment of the opening ceremony for the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games at Fisht Olympic Stadium. (Photo: Robert Hanashiro, USA TODAY Sports)

Olympic snowboarder Shaun White with the U.S. Olympic team as they enter the stage during the opening ceremony for the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games at Fisht Olympic Stadium. (Photo: Robert Hanashiro, USA TODAY Sports)

A general view as snowflakes are positioned together to form the Olympic rings during the opening ceremony for the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games at Fisht Olympic Stadium. (Photo: Jerry Lai, USA TODAY Sports)